2020 Agricultural Cooperatives Directors and Executives Leadership Training

Topics include:

January 30

Track A: Evaluating and planning for mergers and acquisitions

• Organizing your team for an acquisition/merger
• Funding of mergers and acquisitions
• Some examples that we can learn from
• Financial aspects of Mergers and Acquisitions

Track B: GM/CEO Succession Planning: A Team Approach

• Board engagement
• CEO succession as a special case of engagement 
• Identifying the successor
• Board actions in seeking a successor
• Observations on CEO succession planning (or lack of)

January 31

One Track: Case Studies in Successes, Transformations, and Failures

1. Sun-Maid Growers is world’s largest dried fruit marketer. This case describes the new marketing strategy used by the cooperative to promote dried fruit, and in particular raisins.
2. All West/Select Sires has supplied livestock breeders since 1941 with America’s best genetics at a reasonable price. This case describes the bovine genetics industry and how All West’s membership in the federated cooperative Select Sires has successfully met member expectations.
3. Malin Potato Cooperative declared bankruptcy after 55 years in 2015. This case describes the potato industry and the circumstances that led to this bankruptcy.